Two Hippos Shot At ZANU PF Politburo Member’s Homestead

Two hippopotamuses that wandered into ZANU PF Politburo member Obert Mpofu’s rural homestead in Epping Forest, Matabeleland North Province, were shot on Monday after attempts to safely relocate them were deemed too risky.

The hippos were first spotted in the morning at Mpofu’s Village 4 homestead, with footprints near a pond just metres from the main house.

They were later seen partially submerged in the water, occasionally poking their heads above the surface.

Mpofu said the sighting sent shockwaves through the homestead and prompted an urgent call to wildlife authorities. He said:

“We saw the footprints in the morning and later spotted them in the pond.

“We immediately called officials from Zimparks and Chipangali Wildlife Orphanage. The teams came to the farm and assessed the situation. We were relieved that they responded quickly.”

Ashton Tshuma, a conservation officer with Chipangali, said their main priority was keeping both the animals and the community safe. Said Tshuma:

“We worked together with Zimparks to see how best to deal with the situation. We aimed to safely remove them so that they do not pose a danger to people and themselves.”

The operation was complicated by the fact that there were two hippos in the same pond.

Tshuma said the usual procedure for relocating hippos is to dart one at a time, removing it from the water before dealing with the next.

In this case, darting one while leaving the other active in the dam would have been extremely dangerous for the wildlife officers. Said Tshuma:

“You can’t safely dart one and leave the other in the water. The remaining one becomes highly aggressive, making the operation extremely dangerous.”

With safety risks mounting and relocation judged too dangerous, officials decided to shoot the animals. – _Chronicle_